


Flufftember #7

by adrianna_m_scovill



Category: Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Baking, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Showers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:54:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26370739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adrianna_m_scovill/pseuds/adrianna_m_scovill
Summary: Flufftember prompts:Kevin Mulrooney/Johnny Dubcek - baking, showering together
Relationships: Johnny Dubcek/Kevin Mulrooney
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23
Collections: Flufftember 2020





	Flufftember #7

Kevin opened his eyes and stared up at the ceiling, listening to the sounds of Johnny tinkering in the kitchen just a few feet away from the ratty old sofa where Kevin had fallen asleep. It always took a few moments to get his bearings when he woke—to calm the racing of his heart and ease the roiling of his stomach—but it was getting easier. Johnny made him feel safe, and Kevin smiled as he heard the other man humming softly in the tiny kitchen.

He pushed himself up and off the couch, padding quietly to the bathroom. It was cold in the apartment; the radiator wasn’t working again, but that was alright. Johnny had become something of an expert at fixing it, and Kevin had confidence he could take care of it when he was finished with...whatever he was doing in the kitchen.

Kevin peed and washed his hands, giving himself a quick look in the mirror. The bags beneath his eyes were shrinking, and the hollows of his cheeks were slowly but steadily filling. He needed a haircut, but he was starting to look more like someone he recognized.

He walked out and joined Johnny in the kitchen, curious to see what he was doing. He sidled up beside him in the narrow space, looking over his arm to see what Johnny was mixing in a plastic bowl.

Johnny turned his head and gave him a quick kiss. “Sorry ‘bout the heat,” he said. “I’ll get it working.”

“I’m sure,” Kevin answered with a smile. “We should sue the landlord,” he added, but the suggestion was half-hearted. His days of litigation were over, at least until he had some more time and distance between himself and a prison cell. He wasn’t going to do anything to risk the life he and Johnny were slowly building together, and he knew Johnny felt the same way. “What’s this?”

“Brownies,” Johnny said. “Had an old mix I got from the food drive right after I got out. Forgot it was in the cupboard. I didn’t used to have the stuff to make em,” he added, gesturing toward the eggs and oil. “Don’t got the right size measurin cup, though, so I kinda eyeballed it.”

“I’m sure they’ll be perfect,” Kevin said, kissing Johnny’s shoulder. 

Johnny dipped a finger into the chocolate batter and held his hand toward Kevin, who eyed it suspiciously. “I didn’t add the egg, yet. Just the mix, water’n oil.” Kevin opened his mouth, but he made a sound of objection when Johnny smeared the chocolate over his lips instead of poking the finger into his mouth. Johnny laughed and turned, ducking his head to kiss the batter from Kevin’s mouth. “How’s it taste?” 

“You tell me,” Kevin answered with a glare that he knew wasn’t fooling anyone. 

Johnny grinned. “Better on you.”

Kevin touched his tongue to his lip. “I haven’t had brownies in...I don’t even know how long.”

“Well,” Johnny said, turning back to the counter and grabbing an egg. “We will soon. Can you butter the pan for me?”

Kevin looked at the tub of margarine and wrinkled his nose. “Sure,” he said, poking reluctantly into the glop. He could feel Johnny watching him sideways as he started smearing the grease into the dinged-up metal cake pan. 

“Never liked getting your hands dirty, huh,” Johnny said. His tone was light and teasing, not accusing or mocking, but Kevin felt heat creeping out of his collar. “That’s why I always shower when I come home from work.” Kevin’s fingers faltered. “So I don’t get you dirty.”

Kevin turned his head to look at Johnny. “We have a home because of how hard you work,” he said. “ _ I _ have a home. You know how much that means to me?”

“Yeah,” Johnny answered with a small but genuine smile. “It’s just that you deserve more. Better,” he added, looking at the dented cake pan. “A full set of measurin cups.” He stirred the egg into the batter with a fork. “Heater that fuckin’ heats.”

Kevin reached out and put his hand on Johnny’s wrist. “When I wake up and know you’re close by, I feel safe. Nothing’s more important than that.”

Johnny turned toward him again and put a hand on Kevin’s hip. “I always wanna keep you safe but I wanna give you—”

Kevin reached up with his other hand and smeared margarine across Johnny’s lips and up his cheek. Johnny stared at him in disbelief, unmoving and silent, and Kevin laughed at the startled look on his face. After a moment’s consideration, he smeared margarine onto his own cheeks, as well. 

“We’ll clean up  _ together _ ,” he said, and he knew from the suddenly soft look on Johnny’s face that the other man knew he wasn’t only talking about the grease. “I want to give you all the things I could’ve, once, too. But we’ll get there.” Kevin had never been an optimist, and hope had been in extremely short supply in recent years, but he had faith in Johnny. 

Johnny scooped up another fingerful of batter and slopped it onto Kevin’s chin, laughing when Kevin grimaced. “In that case…guess we might as well get  _ real _ dirty first.” He winked, making it as suggestive as possible, but Kevin knew that Johnny was incapable of being anything other than sweet and considerate.

“How long do these have to bake?”

Johnny picked up the empty box and scanned the back. “Thirty-five minutes.”

“Pour it in,” Kevin said, sliding the greased cake pan closer to the bowl. “I’ll go start the shower so the water warms up.”

“Hey, you got a little somethin on your face.”

Kevin despised the feeling of the cool, wet batter on his chin, and the greasy margarine smeared on his cheeks, but he would douse himself in the stuff if it would make Johnny smile. Instead of going that far, he dipped his finger into the batter and put a dollop on his own neck. “You can get it for me in a minute,” he said, and Johnny’s laugh was music to his ears as Kevin turned and headed toward the bathroom.

He started the shower and stripped out of his jeans and shirt, careful not to get batter or butter on the latter, and turned to eye himself in the mirror. He was thin and pale, and he watched his reflection as he poked himself in the ribs. He ran his fingers down to the burgundy lace at his hip, thumbing at the elastic. It looked good against his pale skin.

He stilled when Johnny stepped into the small space behind him, and their eyes met in the mirror. Kevin swallowed, suppressing a lifetime’s worth of instinct to cover himself. 

Johnny held his stare in the mirror, running his fingers down Kevin’s sides and hooking his thumbs into the lace waistband. He bent his head and kissed the curve of Kevin’s bare shoulder, and Kevin was powerless to suppress his shiver. It was cold in the bathroom, the steam from the warming water only beginning to drift out of the tub, but it wasn’t the chilly air that had goosebumps breaking out across Kevin’s skin.

“You got any idea how hot you are?” Johnny murmured against Kevin’s shoulder. 

Kevin smiled and turned into Johnny’s arms. None of Kevin’s own insecurities mattered in the face of Johnny’s adoration. “Thank you for making me feel that way,” he said. He wanted to tell Johnny that he loved him, but those words were still trapped inside his chest. So, instead of saying them, he helped Johnny peel off his clothes, and when they were both naked they stepped into the rust-stained tub together, and Kevin slowly and carefully cleaned the margarine from Johnny’s face before soaping the rest of his body.

Johnny nuzzled Kevin’s neck, licking the chocolate from his skin. He washed Kevin’s face, clearing away the batter and grease, careful to keep the soap away from his eyes. Then they simply stood in the hot spray, huddled close together, running their fingers over each other and letting the heat of the shower make them forget about the chill of the apartment. 

They didn’t get out until the water began to cool and they could smell the enticing aroma of baking brownies through the fog of steam. They dried each other and dressed in sweats and thick socks before padding out to the kitchen. They served hot, messy brownies onto a plate without waiting for them to cool, and went to snuggle under a blanket on the sofa.


End file.
